The Federal Circuit Court has ruled that NSW employees on workers' compensation are entitled to accrue annual leave under the Fair Work Act, a situation that will be reversed if the Senate passes the Abbott Government's amendments to the federal legislation.
A new study shows that more than half of employed Australians who receive additional pay for non-standard hours would stop working them if those penalties were removed, countering claims from some employers that the work patterns are a lifestyle choice.
Advice from the Fair Work Ombudsman has prompted the Fair Work Commission to set up a full bench to iron out inconsistencies between modern award provisions and the national employment standards, as part of its 4-yearly review.
In a wide-ranging attack on the Heydon Royal Commission, ACTU assistant secretary Tim Lyons has dubbed it as part of a conservative agenda to restrict "organising, industrial action, right of entry, public campaigning, political action and expenditure, litigation, access to arbitration and the right to be self-governing".
The Federal Circuit Court has found the sole director of a delicatessen/cafe accessorily liable in an underpayment case spanning more than 30 years and four periods of industrial law.
A long history of employee complaints and the need to send a strong message to the hair and beauty industry that "it does not pay to underpay workers" has led to a hairdressing chain being fined $70,000 for short-changing an apprentice more than $8,000.
The ACTU is seeking in the FWC's four-yearly review of modern awards to introduce an across-the-board entitlement to 10 days a year of paid family and domestic violence leave.
A Coalition Senate committee majority is recommending that parliament pass unamended the Federal Government bill that caps the redundancy entitlements of insolvent company employees at 16 weeks, while Labor and the Greens are opposing its passage.
Employment Minister Eric Abetz says that no formal decision has been made to create an appeal jurisdiction for the Fair Work Commission, despite Prime Minister Tony Abbott flagging his personal support for the plan.
